Before the Holiday Parties: Prep Your Skin

Are you tired of applying layers upon layers of foundation in order to achieve a smooth, flawless look, only to have all your efforts vanish before the night is over? If this is the case, it’s possible that you are skipping an important step—skin prep. So before you head out to your next holiday party, follow this step-by-step guide to get your skin ready, so you’ll be looking fabulous all night long.

Step One: Cleanse and Eye Crème

Just as with any artistic endeavor, you must start with a clean canvas. When your skin is dry, cracked or oily, you can’t achieve a smooth application, and your makeup will looked caked on. Dry skin absorbs the foundation, too much oil will cause the makeup to fade away easily, and cracked skin under a layer of foundation creates the illusions of wrinkles—and who wants that? This is why you must first wash your face with a gentle daily cleanser suitable for your skin type. Once cleansed, pat your skin dry and apply a small amount of eye crème on the lids and under the eye. This will prevent your eye makeup from melting away and landing on your lower lid. After you are finished, allow your skin time to dry before you move on to the next step.

Step Two: Moisturize and Prime

Next, you’ll want to moisturize the skin and apply a primer. Luckily, IMAGE has combined the two, allowing you to skip a full step. The Prevention + Daily Matte Moisturizer works as both a moisturizer and a primer. It uses a combination of anti-oxidants to decrease the damaging effects of the sun, a strong spf, and microsponge technology to absorb the surface oils, leaving you with a shine-free, matte finish. By using a primer, you’re not only allowing for smoother makeup application, but it actually takes less foundation to achieve the coverage you want. The primer works by gripping onto your makeup, making it stay on longer. It also works as a barrier, sealing in and protecting treatment products you have already applied.

Step Three: Foundation

Now that you have the perfect matte canvas, you are ready for the makeup application. The I Conceal Flawless Foundation is a lightweight, water-resistant foundation designed to not only conceal but heal. For light coverage, use your fingertips to apply, starting in the middle and working your way out. If you are looking for more coverage, use a sponge, again starting in the middle and working your way out. You’ll be amazed how smoothly your foundation goes on, and how radiantly flawless your skin now looks.